The whole class heaved a sigh of relief when Dr Abajingin decided to call it a day. We’d been in class for four straight hours supposedly listening to EEG 401 lectures. The course, Electromechanical Wave Theory, was, to half of us, another deliberate creation of a group of disturbed individuals headed by a certain long-dead Maxwell, meant to cause engineering students grievous mental harm and consistent sleepless nights.
We all stood up, and waited for whoever the frail-looking prof would select that evening to lead us in closing prayers.
Dr Abajingin is a weird being. His lectures, usually far apart, was no less than a gathering of forced worshippers at the temple of some lost god. To start with, he always started his classes with an opening prayer and ended with a closing prayer. And like a pseudo-religious gathering, he always spent the first twenty minutes of the class giving what resembled a sermon complete with popular bible verses. When he now decided to start lectures, he is wont to open the error-riddled textbook he authored, pick a chapter, and read to the class. If the spirit willed him to, he’d solve an example in the book for us and give assignments that would be different and difficult than that he had solved practically every session for years. I used to think the man was a hopeless nut case, but with time, I discovered he did not even have a case, hopeless or not.
“You!” The Dr’s coarse voice like my dog’s suppressed barks went out across the hall to someone I didn’t immediately recognise. All eyes swayed towards the direction the voice was aimed at. I wanted to look in the direction too until I realised I was actually the one the spirit had chosen.
“I sir?” I asked in a surprisingly calm voice.
“Yes, you.” He paused and took off his white cap, preparatory to the beginning of prayers.
Shock descended on me as I realised I was to lead a prayer for the day. I cleared my throat, looked around, removed my imaginary cap in a deliberate mimic the Dr missed, and settled for prayer time.
I could hear giggles and sarcastic coughs all around me but I ignored them and closed my eyes.
“Father, thank you for everything. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.”
I was through in all of seven seconds.
When I opened my eyes, the prof happened to be in my line of vision. As we locked eyes, I could see indifference in his eyes.
“What’s your name boy?” He asked, his face betrayed no emotion.
“Kenechukwu sir.”
“Kenechukwu, are you a Christian or a Muslim?”
The question was unexpected because I just prayed in Jesus’ name. I answered nonetheless. “A Christian sir.”
“No. I seriously doubt that. A Christian would never pray like a pagan. Christianity is not a religion; it is a way of life. And if you live your life like a goat, you end up like one.”
For reasons they alone knew, the class burst into laughter.
“But, sir…”
“Kenechukwu,” the Dr stated slowly, his breathing suddenly heavy and forced, “pray for us.”
I sighed, rolled my eyes and tried again. I was confused for I really didn’t know what to pray for or how to pray. As I struggled within me, an idea dropped into my head. The idea was so good I smiled inwardly. If I had been bold enough to laugh out loud, I am sure I would have reminded the class of an overfed hyena.
“Let us pray,” I said for the second time that evening.
There was seriousness around the Lecture Theatre now. It was as if my spirit had communicated the moment to them.
I cleared my throat and began:
“As our saviour taught us, so we pray.” I paused to see if there’d be any chuckle. There was none. So I continued:
“Our Father who hath in heaven. Hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come…” Before I knew it, the whole class was saying the Lord’s Prayer with me.
“…but deliver us from all evil, for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.”
The Amen resounded across the hall.
Fearfully, I opened my eyes to observe the class. Everyone was focused on Dr Abajingin. I turned to look at him too.As a matter of familiarity, we all knew the prayers were ‘accepted’ when the man returned the cap to his bald head.
But for a while he didn’t. Instead, he looked round the class, shook his head and walked out, cap in hand.
***
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Comments
Da Writing Engineer @banky
I am who I am: The Writing Engineer!Go to Da Writing Engineer's profile, and read more of his/her posts.
If there is anything I like in my life it is to remain focused irrespective of the challenge.As Christians we shouldnt compromise or condescend to the status quo out of fear or cowardice.Our God is bigger than any institution.Again the message is direct and straight to the point for me-Dont compromise!@banky well done!
@sambrightomo, I agree with you. Inasmuch as we sometimes crumble under pressure, doing what we find acceptable to our God and humane should be paramount on our minds….
Thank you for reading bro, thanks.
@banky, this was good O°˚˚˚!
But….
Wasn’t too funny sha
What is @sambrightomo talking about?
@kaycee this story takes me beyond the writer’s intent…Just thought to give voice to the going-on in my mind as I read.That is just it.
@sambrightomo, dont mind @kaycee joor, e no know say na wetin pastor take preach for church still dey your mind as you read the story!
hehehehehehehe. @kaycee, @sambrightomo sha don answer you? ehn, that’s what he was talking about!
Thanks man.
Ah!..You just described a lecturer of mine…Mr Fobey…he actually gives marks if u can explain d readings of d day..Every wednesday morning, pple dey go morning mass for marks..
So you sabi ‘The Lord’s prayer’ yet you go do non-prayer.
Mr Fobey bawo?! Wow, that’s the beauty of writing. The prof is actually a hybrid of two of my lecturers in Engineering school. And now that you say he resembles your Mr Fobey, then Mr Fobey must be an aggregate of my lecturers then!
Some lecturers are just plain crazy. That’s the truth but I enjoyed their craziness while it lasted sha. hehehehehehe.
The Lord’s Prayer is the ONLY prayer Jesus taught us joor. To me, if you can say the Lord’s prayer in truth and with all belief, all the ‘fire-fire’ prayers would amount to nothing.
Thanks for reading @sibbylwhyte. Kisses!
Hahahaha. Nah b smal tin.
Dat lecturer resemble my old man wel wel.
hehehehehehehehe. maybe na ur old man sef! U be Lactoo Abajingin? hehehehehehe.
Thanks for your time bro.
Nice one, Kenechukwu is not far off though as the lords prayer is the prototypical prayer.
@riowrites, abi o! Thanks bro.
Nice piece, the lecturer is obviously nuts…
You can say that agian @francis. But he always made me laugh sha….hehehehehe
I found this funny, @banky, especially the ten-word prayer of Kenechukwu.
I wonder at the lecturer. Must prayers be of a specific form?
Thank you bro. I guess I had no figure of speech issue then, @TolaO?
I look up to you bro, your comments are always welcomed.
God bless you man.
not bad, i especially like the part where he leaves cap in hand. keep writing!
herhehehehehehjeh. @nicolebassey. …like a defeated dog who retreats tail-between-legs! Thanks bro.
@Banky, hehe…u are lucky maxwell is not here to read dat first paragraph oh…..well, sometimes i feel like we should carry placards to protest against some of those linear wave equations and the likes. Am lucky by half, in that i don’t have a prof Abanjigin for a lecturer.
@ichadgreat, you an engineering student?! *claps. Good to know that. Be sincere bro, doesn’t Maxwell and his ilk appear disturbed to you? Ask yourself why/how on earth a sane being would author over two hundred equations including the corollaries? No be electricity finish Faraday? Newton went for days without food and sleep, and Galileo was considered a nutcase in ancient Pisa! Forget it bro, some of the forbears of science had deep mental issues but truth be told sha, without them, life would have been as backward as it was at creation. For their exploits, I doff my heart.
Thanks for reading bro.
lol…you obviously escaped the long winded disease of the oh so faithful! Old man still in old school of faith.
@dottaraphels, lolz! Thanks madam, thank you.
This Dr, did he not wear eye glasses suspended on the tip of his nose like most of them do? You never mentioned it. Nevertheless, I immagined him looking over those glasses into your face as he asked whether you were a Christian or Moslem.
It’s a nice story.
e be like say ds one too religious to need one jare.
I get your message bro, i didnt think it necessary considering the Flash category I wrote this in.
Thanks sir @sontel
That’s okay. You know those days in the primary school, the headmaster would peep over those large glasses into your face if you committed an offence. That way, he always found out the truth.
No it was not a non-prayer….As for your lecturer’s academic laziness, reminds me of one my maths teacher in secondary school, Mr. Kayode. He entered the class always reeking of this awful perfume, evaded questions by students, solved examples and gave us crazy assignments….
@enoquin, I blv it wasn’t a non-prayer too; after all, dt ws d model prayer Christ left for us. As for you Mr Kayode, dem plenty lik dt for naija academic environment o.
Thanks for dropping by.
@sibbylwhyte, if ur Mr. Fobey happens to be a camerounian who also sings in class while standing on top of a class desk and sometimes shout “getout of my class” in the middle of prayers to any student he finds opeing his/her eyes during prayers, then i just might know him.
@banky…kenechukwu tried jare…i would speak in tongues if i were in his shoes
@weirdpile, now that would be weird! So you know @sibbylwhyte‘s Mr Fobey too? O pari o
Thanks for your time.
Hehehehe…@weirdpile..You sabi am..And if U happen to slink in through one of the open doors or windows when late…na then U go sabi say Jackie chan na cameroonian wey dey stay for naija.
Dr Olorunmaye taught me Plant Physiology I, II, III, IV. He would spend the first 2 hours of a 3 hour class lecturing us about dress code, punctuality, seriousnes etc. Him, I loathed.
I like your story. Well written, not so funny though.
I agree bro. Thanks for reading. God bless you.
Nice story @banky !
Its actually a funny story but i know that if you re-wrote it again you’d make it funnier.
Nice and realistic scenario…crazy lecturers full ground in almost any school.
But I’m not sure about the title. The story is better than the title you gave it. I almost didn’t read it when I saw the title.
STill I like this!
@afronuts, thanks jare. Couldnt think of a better title when I wrote it, even now. I think some of those crazy lecturers actually made schooling fun. I liked and hated them in equal measure.
Thanks again.
What else did the Prof. want?
Maybe speaking in tongues…hehehehehehe. @jonnysnow
How else is he supposed to pray? Speak in Tongue? Hehehehe
Nice piece Bro. Keep keeping it real.
Na speaking in tongues sure pass o! hehehehehehe. I am glad you liked this. Thanks man, I will. God bless you, @lancaster